


Say it Back

by Anarchy_Axe



Category: Jeverse, Original Work
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:49:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27590945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anarchy_Axe/pseuds/Anarchy_Axe
Summary: In which Sabrina learns how much her friends adore her and finds a way to let them know how much she adores them.orFive times Sabrina got told “I love you” and the one time she finally said it back.
Kudos: 1





	Say it Back

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this little thing a while ago but finally got around to posting it today! If you haven’t noticed I love my friends ;^;

**Jenna**

“I’m telling you, this is a terrible idea,” Jenna looked over her shoulder, hands almost gripping Sabrina’s shoulders but not quite. Sabrina scoffed at her, rolling her hands off and bracing herself. 

“It’s a great idea, you’re gonna have loads of fun,”

“We have different ideas of fun Ace,” 

“That’s a you problem,” Sabrina grinned over her shoulder, eyebrows dancing. Suddenly, she took off, letting her sock-laden feet slide against the newly polished hardwood. She whooped excitedly, sliding along the floor, hands thrown around to try and balance herself. 

She came to a near crash at the other end of the hall, whipping around to flash Jenna a thumbs up. The other girl looked terribly nervous, fingers playing with the tips of her evergreen dyed hair. Sabrina sighed loudly and rolled her eyes, calling out to Jenna. 

“Just come on Jebba! Its just your hardwood,”

Jenna shot her a nervous look, one hand braced on her wall. “What if I fall?”

“You fall. Get back up,” she deadpanned. “C’mon, it’s fine I just did it,” 

Thankfully Jenna decided at that moment to grow a pair, because in the next she pushed herself off the wall and sprinted, yelping once she began to slide, toeing the line of wildly out of control. She met Sabrina’s eyes with her own and let out an excited laugh, cut short when she crashed into her. 

Sabrina couldn’t help but wheeze out a chuckle as Jenna began rambling apologies in the middle of excited squealing and ‘Oh my god that was the best let’s do it again—I’m so sorry—it was so fun you were right!’s. Sabrina decided that Jenna had a nice laugh, and she was weak to it. Consequently she wanted to hear her friend laugh again, so down the hallway they went again and again, until the novelty should have worn off, but it didn’t. 

Eventually Sabrina found herself on Jenna’s couch, a bowl of chips resting on her lap. Across from her Jenna was trying to mime a sheep, not doing the best job of it. Sabrina grinned at her and popped a chip into her mouth, drawling out multiple non-answers, gleefully watching her friend get progressively more desperate.

“Oh come on, how can you not know this!” Jenna cried, throwing her hands into the air.

Sabrina smirked and raised an eyebrow. Jenna pouted and kicked the sofa gently. With a chuckle and another chip Sabrina finally relented, getting a squawk of indignation from Jenna. 

“You knew the whole time didn’t you!”

“Maybe I did,” another chip down the hatch. 

Jenna gasped, hand pressed to her chest. “How dare you! I made a fool out of myself for nothing!” She had the most petulant face put on but her eyes twinkled with mirth. 

“Not for nothing,” Sabrina amended, crunching another chip. “I greatly enjoyed it,” 

Jenna scoffed and threw herself onto the couch, wrestling the chips from her and motioning for Sabrina to take her place. She grumbled good naturedly and planted herself in front of the couch, thinking under her breath for something simple to act out. She grinned as she came to an idea, dropping into a slouch and mimed having wobbly knees. She pretended to heave herself along with a cane, one eye closed and the other squinted. 

Jenna frowned in concentration before snapping her fingers, “Oh—Oh, is it Nathan? An old person?” She tried again, “Old age, Old people! Nathan?” She repeated, leaning over the chips and waving her hand frantically. 

Sabrina suppressed a grin and shook her head, continuing to hobble along. “Come on! It’s gotta be something old right?? Elderly people? Elders? Ancient people?” She whined, hair falling past her shoulders. 

Sabrina held up one finger and continued to act, fully committing as much as she could without speaking or making noise. Eventually Jenna gave up, collapsing onto the couch and throwing her hands back, groaning in exasperation. 

“How was that ‘Grandparent’? You’re a dirty cheater,” Jenna pointed an accusing finger at her, expression sulky. 

Sabrina shrugged nonchalantly and waved her off, rambling a random excuse with a smirk. She flopped down onto the couch while Jenna thought of what to do next, her eyebrows furrowed. “I’m never gonna win against you am I?” She grumbled.

“You can try,” she suggested helpfully, a shit-eating grin definitely not on her face. Jenna scowled at her and bumped her with an elbow, cracking a grin at Sabrina’s wince. 

“OH!” Suddenly, Jenna stood up and practically sprinted away, skidding slightly on her feet as she dashed away. Sabrina lifted an eyebrow and gave the now empty space next to her a baffled look. Her taller friend appeared a few minutes later, holding up an old version of Just Dance, waggling it excitedly.

“Let’s play this!” She whooped, already pulling Sabrina to her feet and popping the disc in. Sabrina allowed herself to be manhandled into picking the first song, laughing as Jenna floundered to dance to ‘Get Lucky’ 

Sabrina didn’t do as awful as she thought she would, but even just one on one dancing left her feeling slightly embarrassed. She soothed her thoughts with a firm shove, letting out a squawk when Jenna bumped into her hard enough to make her stumble. 

“Who’s the cheater now,” she snickered, hip checking Jenna in revenge. After that the game became a bit of a competition, although never too serious, as it might’ve been if she were with someone else. With Jenna there was just enough focus, never getting too serious, plenty of jokes and self-jabs being thrown. They laughed as they spun around each other in a mock square dance, over exaggerating their motions during the ‘YMCA’ and practically putting on a performance during ‘Prince Ali’, complete with horribly off key singing. 

After getting her ass handed to her with ‘Starships’, along with way too many others, Sabrina’s legs felt like pudding, and she sprawled herself limply over Jenna’s couch, reaching in vain for the chips. 

Jenna didn’t look any better, panting and holding her side. She dragged herself to her kitchen and came back with two water bottles, tossing one onto Sabrina’s back and cracking open the other. She flopped onto the couch, jolting the chips enough to knock them onto the floor. Sabrina let out a mournful whine, pounding a limp fist into the couch while Jenna laughed her ass off. 

“Movie?” Jenna questioned, poking at her back. Sabrina nodded her head into the couch, lifting a thumbs up. 

She left Jenna’s house that day feeling lighter than she and in weeks.

—————————————————————————————

**Min**

It was sometime during three a.m. and Sabrina could not sleep. She tried everything she could think of: turning the fan on, then off when it got too cold; switching the pillow around; getting the fabled glass of warm milk, ‘note to self, never ever do that again’; watched hours of YouTube; counted every sheep known to man; et cetera, but alas, nothing. In a last ditch effort she texted a few of her friends, sighing heavily when half an hour went by without response. 

Then her phone gave a small chime. Sabrina sat up in bed and reached for her nightstand to grapple with it. Squinting at the bright light, a smile quirked her lips to see someone had responded. 

Beefki

Can’t sleep <  
Read 3:24am

> On god, me too  
> wanna FaceTime?  
>if you don’t wanna that’s fine too  
>totally ok 👌

Sabrina felt her interest pique, clicking on the little camera button next to Min’s icon. The phone rang for a few seconds before a perpetual grumpy face greeted her. Mom’s room was considerably brighter, their cropped hair mussed and a tablet pen behind their ear. They had on a wrinkled graphic tee, of what Sabrina couldn’t make out. Min shot her a half grin and a hello, which Sabrina repeated in tandem. 

“Were you busy?” Sabrina nodded vaguely at Min, miming the pen on their body. Min cocked their head before plucking it out and giving a surprised yelp, looking almost furious.

“I thought I lost this fucking thing!” They growled, waving said pen before tossing it to the side, glaring at it as if it had offended them. “I looked for hours for that stupid thing, I’m so pissed,” 

Sabrina grinned in response, “head too full, braincells dying,”

“On god, you stole the braincells, I fully blame you,”

“I can’t steal what you never had,” Sabrina shot her a playful sneer. 

Min snorted and made a pausing gesture, giving a ‘Lemme put this away before I fucking loose it again,’ and going off screen. Sabrina listened in amusement as Min threw around a few swears and ordered something, presumably in their work area. 

“Messy?” Sabrina asked, half joking.

“Fuckin always, gotta shit ton of tissues here,”

“Gross, you snot all over the place?”

Min gave a huff. “Hell no, I watched A Silent Voice and cried again,”

Sabrina nodded solemnly to the empty camera. “Big baby,”

Min barked out a laugh as they came back into view, repositioning the camera until the tail end of an instrument coming into view. “You kill me Lemon, but to answer, besides crying, I’ve just been messing with this,” they lifted their ukulele to the camera, giving it a small shake.

Sabrina hummed in appreciation, settling further into her bed and propping her phone up so she could talk with her hands. “Learn anything new?”

“A little, been messing with a bit of Conan and Cavetown, my voice sucks ass for it though.”

Sabrina pouted, “untrue. Also what songs?”

“It is true! I can’t hit the pitches,” Min whined, scowling at her. “The new albums, they’ve killed me,” Sabrina rolled her eyes in response, busying herself with pulling up her hair again. 

“Prove it,” she mumbled through the hair tie between her teeth, nodding pointedly at Min. They blanked in reply, spending enough time in silence that Sabrina had finished her hair and was staring expectantly at the other. 

Min grumbled something akin to a swear under their breath before they positioned their ukelele, pointedly giving a ‘Youll see how shit it is or whatever,’ and began to strum a soft tune. Sabrina reached for her headphones and plugged them in, the tinny notes of the instrument filling her head. 

Then Min began to sing. It was quiet at first, voice just the smallest bit rough. They stopped and cleared their throat, giving a small apology that Sabrina waved off, fully attentive. “Don’t fuckin laugh,” 

“Not planning on it,” she answered honestly. Min tutted and gripped their instrument a little harder, before they relaxed again and began. 

“This hurt that I'm holding's getting heavy,

But I'ma keep a smile on my shoulders 'til I'm sweaty…”

Their voice was soft, eyes half closed as they dipped and swayed their head slightly to the chords. Sabrina smiled to herself, fingers playing with the loose threads of her pajama pants.

“...I've already hid the body…”

Sabrina found herself moving gently to the notes alongside her, the acoustic version of this song settling different in her chest. 

“...you I'm fine, I don't really need nobody,

But you say through a sigh, that I said that lie already…” 

Min looked fully immersed in the music, their voice more confident and strong, but still holding the gentle vulnerability of the lyrics. Sabrina followed their motions with her gaze, leaning against her headboard almost sedated. In the darkness of her room she let the melody fill the space, lyrics dancing alongside gentle chords and wrapping her in their presence. She gave a gentle sigh and looked around her: at her closed blinds, hiding a undoubtedly serene night sky; at her closet, tomorrow’s clothes hanging from the slightly opened door, at her cabinets, holding pictures and papers alike. 

“Yeah, I could spend a lifetime, sitting here talkin'...

And even if I cry all over your body, you don't really mind...

Say you like your shirt soggy,” 

Sabrina felt content down to her bones, so much so that she didn’t even surprise herself when she began to sing alongside Min. 

“Yeah, I just needed company now,”

Min looked up in surprise at her voice, but gave a small fond smile before continuing without stopping. Sabrina let her gaze wander, not settling on any one thing but completely and totally unhurried.

“Yeah, I don't care what song that we play, or mess that we make,

Just company now,

Comfort crowd…” 

Sabrina looked at the camera to see Min looking back, grin almost cracking their voice. Reflexively she grinned back. 

“And laugh too loud, and make the sounds,

We try to hide when people are around,

By blood we're bound,

Through ups and downs,

Through smiles and pouts,

Comfort crowd.”

In that moment, with the final chorus still between them, Sabrina felt fully and completely happy. A soothing happiness, a calming one, one where no words needed to be shared but every emotion is told anyway. Min gave her a smile that spoke a million words, gaze both so intense and so open that all Sabrina could do in response was smile. 

“See,” she breathed, not breaking eye-contact. “Perfect pitch,” 

Min stared back, slack jawed and with the faintest embarrassed flush. They quickly broke eye contact and grumbled under their breath, ‘I can’t fucking deal with this sappy shit at three am,’ then hung up the phone. Sabrina blinked at her darkened reflection, lips quirked into a small grin. Her phone chimed.

Beefki

>you sang good too  
>gn  
go mimis min <  
Read 3:40am

She fell asleep with a smile. 

—————————————————————————————

**Axel**

Sabrina felt her eyebrows furrowing, “It's urgent?” she inquired, somewhat apprehensive. The voice on the other end gave an enthusiastic confirmation, their voice warbled slightly. Sabrina gave a hefty sigh, she found herself sighing a lot recently, a ‘I’ll be there, yes, try not to die, uh-huh’ ending their conversation. 

Tossing her phone back onto her duvet, Sabrina eyeballed her calendar, scowling at the date. ‘Shit, gotta doctors appointment today,’ she grumbled to herself, mentally weighing how much inconvenience postponing her visit would be. Her doctor wouldn’t be pleased, Sabrina’s pretty sure they would blacklist if she kept wasting their precious time. Sighing, there it is again, she dropped herself onto her bed, shoulders drooping and mentally working herself up to ring up the notoriously cranky receptionist. What could’ve been minutes or hours later, Sabrina found herself dialing the office, one hand massaging what would soon be a growing headache. 

Sabrina found that headache coming back full force. Lips pressed into a thin line, she stared up at Axel, who, to his credit, had the decency to look embarrassed. His fingers were stained where they scratched at his skin absently, clothes rumpled and dirty with mysterious patches. 

Axel grinned sheepishly, one arm coming to ruffle his hair. “It seemed urgent at the time I swear,” he waved his hand to his kitchen, expression hangdog. She gave him her patented ‘Are your kidding me’ face, arms crossed and face pulled into a sour frown. 

He waved her inside, fingers almost guiding on her shoulder, apologies being tossed at a surprising rate. ‘Although really, with Axel, not very surprising.’ Sabrina huffed to herself, eyeing the way his apartment got progressively less organized the closer to the kitchen and dining area they got. As Axel led her through his kitchen Sabrina felt her eyebrows shoot up and mouth part, completely flabbergasted at the disarray. Pots and containers lined the countertops, lids partially or completely discarded; a semi-filled blender resting unplugged next to the open microwave; dishes were piled high in the sink; the pantry was open, a box of Poptarts ominously on the tiled floor. On the dark wooden table a glass Lazy Susan boasted a wide plate full of small tinted shot glasses; as well as the TV remote, half empty glasses of water, several napkins, and a face down index card. 

Axel turned to look at her expectantly, her disbelieving stare was his only reply. “This is your urgent issue? Housecleaning?”

Axel looked admonished, brown doe eyes widening and lip sticking out in a pout. “I wouldn’t! I needed someone to take these shots with me,” he held up the index card, which held a table filled with tallies. “Me and Archie we’re doing some gaming and the loser would take the shots, but,” he looked mournful, “she had to leave before we could get to the fun part, I don’t got the heart to dump out everything, it took hours to prepare all of these,” he turned back to Sabrina with a hopeful smile. 

Sabrina sighed, trying to conceal her growing smirk as she plopped down onto the chair opposite of her lanky friend, resting her elbows on the table to leer into the glasses. Based on the way he beamed at her she knew she had failed. 

“So, how’s this work? I take my pick or what?” Sabrina asked, eyebrow lifted as she teased the lip of the Lazy Susan. 

Axel chuckled and shook his head. “We’ll take turns spinning for each other, whichever ends up in front of you you take,” he motioned to the glass in front of him, an indigo black glass filled with a red-orange liquid. “I would take this one for example,” 

Sabrina nodded, excitement starting to override aprehenson. An idea popped into her head as she reached to spin the glass. “First one to hurl owes the other 50 bucks.” She saw the instant a competitive glint appeared in Axel’s eyes, his grin turning sharper in an instant. 

“You’re on Sourpatch,” 

Sabrina leaned forward in her seat, winding up her arm to spin the glass. “Bet.” The Susan spun quickly, the shot glasses sliding slightly on the plate, but thankfully not spilling. The glass Axel landed on was a crisp blue one, and when he lifted it the liquid inside hardly moved with how thick it was. His face was pulled into a pained grimace, as he looked directly at Sabrina, throwing back the shot and instantly gagging. 

Sabrina with eyes wide coughed out a laugh at his expression, laughing growing stronger at the exaggerated gagging motions he made, a smile pulling at his lips. 

“What was in that one?”

“Honey, thick water and cinnamon,” he replied, taking a grateful sip from his water. Sabrina grimanced at the reply, mentally preparing herself for the inevitable stomach ache that would come later. Mind over matter right? Just ignore whatever was inside these shot glasses.

“Any of these got alcohol?” She tried hopefully. 

Axel grinned devilishly, choosing to reply by spinning the glass, not taking his eyes off of the concoctions. A bright red Rainforest Cafe glass trailed to a stop in front of her, its contents suspiciously black. She lifted it to her nose and sniffed apprehensively, immediately smelling strong coffee. Sabrina doubted that was all considering the borderline maniacal grin Axel was sporting. ‘Mind over matter, mind over matter mind over matter,’ 

She tipped her head back and downed the shot, body tensing for some sort of aftertaste. When nothing but a mild tang came she glared suspiciously at the glass, then at Axel, who’s grin hadn’t lessened. 

“S’just taste like coffee,” she muttered with confusion, spinning the glass between her fingers. “What’s in it?”

“Dog shit,” Axel deadpanned, face completely blank. 

Sabrina snorted, setting down the empty glass and spinning the Susan. “S’ black coffee, edible ink and black licorice,” Axel huffed slightly, already reaching for a pearl colored glass and swirling it. “Expected it to taste worse,” 

Sabrina chuckled and flicked a strand of hair over her shoulder, replying with an easy ‘Iron stomach’. Axel snorted at that, sipping quietly at the glass. 

——————

The plate became empty and emptier as time and spins went by. Shots of mac and maíz, ketchup and yogurt, hotdog water, limes and rum, edible clay and sprite—that one had been particularly off putting—, Mountain Dew and buzzplants, jellybeans and mayo, along with various other horrendous combinations went down their throats. Jabs and teases thrown at each other, neither fully backing down but both growing increasingly queasy. The final glass stared Sabrina in the face as she burped into her fist. 

“No ones gonna mock you if you can’t take it,” Axel looked serious enough, but the way he reached for his wallet told a different story. His upper body was splayed on the table, hair rumpled and looking utterly exhausted. Sabrina scowled at him and looked into the unassuming glass. She felt almost drunk, although the number of alcoholic shots were less than five. Inside it, a pinkish liquid sloshed around, a fishy smell already wafting up to Sabrina. 

“Shut it, I can do this,” she grumbled, half to herself. She brought the shot glass to her face, breathing slowly, trying to will herself to drink it. “What’s in this one?”

“You really wanna know?” 

Sabrina shot him a deadpan. Axel half-laughed and leaned across the table to glance at the cup. 

“That’s the fish one,” 

Now Sabrina definitely felt queasy. “Just fish?” 

Axel hummed slightly, his teeth worrying his bottom lip. “Tuna, grapes, apple juice and something else I think,” he gagged at the list and looked apologetically at Sabrina. 

“I drink this and you owe me.” She tried at a joke, mentally bracing herself to wrangle any gag reflex that might pop up. 

Axel gave a serious nod, fingers dancing on the edge of the table. Sabrina rolled her eyes at his nerves and muttered a ‘Watch this,’ and threw the shot back, slamming the glass back onto the table. Immediately her body began trying to reject the drink, her eyes watering as she forced it down. The fishy taste was overpowering, and Sabrina had to clear her throat to stave off a coughing fit. 

She glanced up across the table to see Axel staring in awe, eyes practically sparkling and mouth hanging open.

“I love you.” 

This time she did cough, face instantly flushing and hand slapping at the table. Across from her Axel swore and Sabrina heard the sound of a chair skidding before a hand firmly patted her back. 

“Shit—you ok? That was so badass holy shit dude, how did you do that?? Are you good though? Do you need water or something?” He rambled above her, hand rubbing soothing circles on her back. 

Sabrina gave a wheeze and thunked her head on the dark table. “W-Water please,” she rasped, swallowing several times. 

Seconds later a cool glass was being pressed into the side her face. Sabrina lifted her head and accepted the drink wordlessly, embarrassment tinting her face. Axel continued to ramble beside her for a while, gaze darting between her eyes to make sure she was ok. After a bit he began to clear the table, bemoaning how dirty his kitchen was. 

Sabrina finished the water and simply listened. The embarrassment had faded after the initial shock, and in its place a warm fondness had flooded through her. She smiled softly as her friend did the dishes, humming responses to his rambles and questions. 

He never did mention her lack of response.

—————————————————————————————

**Ren**

Logically, Sabrina knew Ren gave good hugs. It was practically transcribed into her job description. ‘Mother of the group: Gives good hugs.’ Knowing and experiencing were two different things however. Maybe it was because whenever Ren attempted one of her hugs Sabrina went stock-still that she started getting invited into them less and less. Nothing against her friend, if anything it was very touching that she noticed her disinterest in extended contact and tried to make her feel more comfortable. 

That didn’t stop Sabrina from wondering though. It certainly didn’t stop her from staring whenever her friends would be pulled into greeting hugs, absentmindedly noting their reactions. Kevin and Axel would launch themselves into her open arms, both boys considerably taller than her but seeming content to stoop down, wearing twin grins and soft eyes; Nathan would give a soft smile and linger for a moment afterwards; Jenna would lean into them, squeezing back with tightly closed eyes; Raven would be completely entrapped in them, giggling and patting Ren’s back; Archana would twirl them both around; Robbie would give a bear hug back, lifting Ren off her feet with a laugh; even Becki would accept hugs, her stone-faced mask cracking as she let out a content sigh. But not Sabrina. And that was ok with her, it’s what she told herself. 

Until it wasn’t. There was nothing technically different with today, nothing had gone overtly wrong, no one had said or done anything rude or off putting, Sabrina supposed it was simply one of her off days. She found herself on Ren’s couch, not really remembering if she had been invited or if she just drove over. She spared Ren’s girlfriend a polite nod, hands clasped together and socked feet tapping an incomprehensible rhythm. 

A weight had settled in her chest, one that seemed to drag her whole being into the floor. Discomforting and aching. The sound of something being placed on the coffee table startled her into looking up. Ren gave her a kind smile, her fingers still grazing the mug of hot chocolate she had just set down. 

“Hey ‘Rina,” she murmured in that soft and kind voice. She pressed the mug into her hands and settled a comfortable distance away from her. For some reason it made her chest ache, and Sabrina frowned into the mug, her distorted reflection frowning back at her.

“Hi,” her reply felt faraway, even to her own ears. She took a tentative sip from the mug, brain not really registering the warmth until it had spread down her chest and throughout her body. But it felt fake, not what she wanted. But she gave Ren a smile and thanked her anyway, it felt rude to do anything else. 

They sat in silence for a while, the soft ticking of an old fashioned clock a reminder of the passage of time. She could tell Ren wanted to say something, it was in the way her eyes rounded with worry, eyebrows pulled into her face and mouth in a thin line. Sabrina pretended not to notice, hands leeching warmth from the mug, shoulders wound up and jaw tight. 

“Do you want to play some cards?” Sabrina looked up in surprise, meeting Ren’s watchful eye. She gave a wordless shrug, before fully committing and nodding. Ren gave her another smile, slightly bigger, and stood up to retrieve the aforementioned cards. She sighed heavily, taking another sip of hot chocolate and letting her gaze wander around. Never far, and not curious, simply roaming, observing. 

“These’re all the ones I have, sorry,” Ren gave a small chuckle, setting down a box of Go Fish. Something about the silliness of the cardboard pulled at the corners of Sabrina’s mouth. Ren grinned in tandem, and watching the way small dimples appeared on her face, a glimmer of relief flashing in her eyes lifted a small weight off of Sabrina’s chest. 

Ren distributed the cards quietly, her face calm and a small smile fixed on her features. It was clear she wasn't going to press her if she didn’t want to, she would be satisfied with Sabrina just here, and that made her heart ache. 

“Any nines?” Sabrina really needed to stop spacing out. Wordlessly she handed over her nine, trying to focus on the game. 

“Threes?”

“Mhm, sixes?”

“Yeah, twos?” Ren gave her the smallest of smirks from behind her cards, shaking her head and motioning to the pile. 

“Go fishin’ ‘Rina,” 

The game was mindless, simple questions followed by simpler rules and tasks. It eventually left Sabrina fully relaxed, her fixed smile becoming less fake and forced. She was loath to break their routine, but at the same time she knew the ache in her bones wouldn’t go away with some card games and small talk. Even if she didn’t want to admit it. 

“You know those days?” Sabrina began, stubbornly not looking up from her cards. Ren gave her an encouraging hum, somehow making it sound patient. “It’s not like anything’s wrong, I’m perfectly ok, wait no, that’s not right,” she stammered, her chest tightening as she stumbled over what should have been a simple sentence. Ren said nothing, exuding the same caring energy. “I just—you know, when nothings really wrong, there’s not really an excuse for feeling all weird and stuff, but you still do?” Sabrina tumbled over herself clumsily, giving Ren a helpless look. 

To her bewilderment Ren seemed to understand. ‘Of course she would. It’s Ren.’ “That’s perfectly okay,” she started, slowly putting down her cards but managing to keep the air soft and relaxed. “I'm sorry you’re feeling down, it’s really awful isn’t it?” 

Sabrina felt heard, even with that simple phrase. She felt her shoulders droop and she nodded. Ren gave her a sympathetic smile and opened her mouth before shutting it gently, a look of apprehension crossing her features. 

“Would you—would you like a hug?” She offered, head titled slightly and looking for the world like she didn’t have a preference of answer. Sabrina worried her bottom lip, fingers skittering on her knees. At her reaction, Ren was quick to amend her request, smoothly continuing, “if you’d rather I could give a pat? Stay for dinner? Watch a movie or two?” She gave Sabrina a variety of options, patience and compassion in every syllable. 

“I guess, a hug would be nice,” Sabrina murmured quietly, still ever so uneasy. Ren grinned at her, bright and easy-going before she opened her arms for a hug, letting her decide to come over. 

Once she did fall into it, she gasped quietly, wrapping her arms around her friend letting her trace soothing patterns into her back. Ren took it in stride, rocking gently and humming ever so softly, her grip strong enough to feel warm and protecting but gentle and unfettering. Sabrina felt the knots in her chest begin to unravel, and she squeezed tighter, a unfiltered hiccup of a sob heaving through her. Ren hummed a worried note. 

“Do you want me to let go?”

Sabrina shook her head furiously, gripping that much tighter. 

“Okay, I won’t. I promise,” Ren pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head and continued to trace shapes and designs with her hand, cards and drinks forgotten.

‘Ren gave great hugs,’ she decided. 

—————————————————————————————

**Robbie**

Sabrina wasn’t super close to Robbie, but that didn’t mean they weren’t friends. So when he invited her to the arcade she was surprised, but not off-put. He agreed to a reasonable meetup time and day, lenient with the specifics and willing to let Sabrina work with her schedule. Not that she had much taking up her time anyway. 

The Saturday rolled around easily and without much ruckus, Sabrina pulling up to the building with a little bounce to her step. ‘It’s been a while since she’s gone out.’ She walked through the automatic doors, slinging her bag casually over her shoulder, eyes searching for a familiar head of hair. When she spotted Robbie she gave a little wave, just enough to catch his keen eye. 

“Aye! Great to see you made it Sourbro,” he teased lightly, knocking shoulders with her. Sabrina rolled her eyes and gave a huff of laughter. 

“Hey to you too Peach,” she gave a little glance around her, “who else is comin’?” 

Robbie gave a short chuckle, scratching at the side of his head. “Just us this time, if that’s alright with you?” 

“Sure, that’s fine,” 

He beamed, “sweet! I already bought us a ton of tokens, here’s your cup,” he handed her a palm sized paper cup full of golden tokens that reminded Sabrina of the classic Chuck-E-Cheese ones. Her eyebrows pulled together slightly.

“You didn’t have to buy me these, they’re super expensive aren’t they?”

He shrugged, adjusting his brown leather jacket. “Wanted to,” his face lit up as he spotted one of the machines. “Wanna play DDR first?” 

Sabrina frowned at his response, a slight feeling of guilt in her chest, but she shrugged it off to nod cheerily. “I’m down.”

He cheered and bolted, very quickly reminding her of an excitable kid, or maybe a puppy. ‘Both?’ Her brain supplied helpfully as she made her way to the machine, where Robbie had already slid the required amount of tokens in their place. 

“Just letting you know, I suck at DDR,” Sabrina warned, completely serious but ready to beat him anyway.

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” he shot back, grin dangerous. 

Sabrina selected a song, one that reminded her vaguely of Vocaloid, and set it on a moderate difficultly level, not wanting to jump the boat too soon. 

“I’ll crush you.” Robbie gave her a very serious look, all business. 

He was right.

Several games went by with average success in Sabrina’s favor. She was by far better at accuracy games that didn’t involve frantically dancing, whereas Robbie utterly dominated in anything with puzzles or patterns. Neither could seem to wrangle anything more than three tickets at those basketball hoops though, they chalked it up to the games being rigged. 

Their cups were starting to empty and the little plastic baggies that held their tickets were beginning to have the opposite problem. Robbie grinned as he watched a pair of middle school aged kids try at a claw machine style game, elbowing Sabrina to watch them too. 

“Five bucks they fail,”

Sabrina scoffed, “those things always make you lose, they’re universally rigged. No deal.”

Robbie considered this, rubbing at his chin and miming twirling a long mustache. “How about, five bucks I make it.” 

Sabrina cocked an eyebrow, a smirk playing on her face. “Five bucks and the twenty-four hour ice cream next door?” She held out a hand, bag tucked into her arm.

Robbie grinned widely, grabbing her hand and shaking it firmly. “Get ready to buy me some ice-cream Sourbro,” 

“As if,” Sabrina called to his back as he made his way to queue up behind the kids.

He laughed over his shoulder and waved her off. After the kids left the machine dejected, Robbie squared his shoulders and slotted a coin into the machine. It purred to life and began to play an overly cheery jingle as Robbie bit his bottom lip in concentration. One hand steadily moving the claw and other poised above the release button like a mantis ready to strike. 

Thirty seconds later and Robbie was twirling a hideous green and purple giraffe in Sabrina’s face, a look of smug satisfaction etched into him. Sabrina scowled and flipped him off discreetly, pouting at his responding laugh. He rapped his knuckles on her forehead and giggled at her when she blew a raspberry. 

“That was unfair,” she declared, head-butting his hand away.

Robbie snorted as he tucked the giraffe under his arm. “How so?”

“You didn’t tell me you had claw machine magic,” 

“I have no such thing,”

“Falsehoods, utter lies, complete slander,”

“I swear on Petunia,” he faux-groveled, gesturing to the limp green head hanging from his armpit. 

Sabrina tutted and made a show of looking away, hiding a grin with a pathetic scowl. Robbie laughed and Sabrina found a scratchy giraffe head being squished against her cheek, flat black plastic eye looking up at her. 

“Petunia says ‘don’t be a little bitch’,” Robbie half whispered, voice teasing.

Sabrina choked and barked out a laugh, whipping around to see Robbie nearly in tears. She motioned to the prize counter through giggles, both of them making their way over to the counter, hiccuping laughter. 

They exchanged their tickets for ridiculously overpriced dollar store prizes, Sabrina spending a good portion on the cheap knick-knacks and candy on the lowest shelf, while Robbie painstakingly counted his tickets for a larger and equally worthless prize higher up. Together they took their loot and left the arcade, smiles pressed to their faces.

Sabrina unwrapped a lollipop and popped it into her mouth, both of them heading to the shop next door. Beside her Robbie fiddled with Petunia, petting the purple tuft of hair with a finger, smiling gently. 

“You gonna keep that?” She asked, flicking her candy wrapper into a trashcan as they walked by. 

Robbie nodded brightly, before momentarily pouting and looking offended, “of course I’m keeping her, we're bonded.” 

Sabrina rolled her eyes again as they reached the door to the quaint ice-cream shop, pulling open the glass door and relishing in the chirp of bells. A tired but kind looking server stood behind the counter, eyes darting up to meet the two of them. 

“Hello, welcome to the SugarCone, how can I help you?” they chirped, straightening up. Robbie’s face lit up and he darted to the glass displays, hands on the cool surface. Sabrina snorted and trailed behind him, eyeing the different flavors. 

“Do you guys have anything non-dairy?” She tried tentatively, already resigned to just getting a mega cookie or something. 

“Uh yeah I think so, we got sherbets over here, lactose free over here and a few non-dairy pints in the freezer over there,” they pointed to each option as they listed, shooting glances back at Robbie who was mulling over two different flavors.

Thanking them, Sabrina strolled over to the adjacent freezer, scanning the top two rows of differently flavored pints. She reached for a rocky road flavored pint and headed to the cashier to wait for Robbie. 

“You know you can get both right?” She called to him as he pointed to a large chocolate dipped waffle cone. He hummed and waved her off, accepting his monstrous looking dessert with a child-like grin. 

The cashier looked between them, squinting slightly before shrugging and ringing them up. Before Robbie could grab his wallet, Sabrina had already paid the amount, shooting a look at him. “I got this.”

They thanked the cashier and left the shop, Sabrina cracking open the pint and pulling open the plastic covered spoon she had been given. Robbie began to tackle his cone, napkins wrapped around the base. 

“I had a fun time, thanks for inviting me,” Sabrina told him, nodding to herself as she deemed the ice-cream worthy. 

“Really?” He looked up with wide eyes before grinning brightly. “I’m glad,” he murmured before taking a bite of his cone.

They walked in content silence, strolling along the sidewalks and nodding to passerbys. The sun was just starting to set, casting pinkish hues into the sky. It was cooling down, Sabrina was glad she wore a jacket, however thin it was. 

“I'm glad you came,” Robbie began gently. “I know we don’t really hang out much, but you’re still my friend ya’know?” He lifted a questioning eyebrow at Sabrina, an easy smile on his face. 

Sabrina just grinned back at him, continuing to eat her dessert. “I’m happy you're my friend Sabrina,” he continued. “I care ‘bout you a lot, if you ever need anything, a favor or someone to talk to, I’m here. Okay?” 

Warmth pulled at her heartstrings and Sabrina smiled around the spoon in her mouth. She bumped shoulders with him and murmured a quiet “yeah Rob, I know.” 

She hung out with Robbie more often after that. 

—————————————————————————————

**+1.**

It was the last Saturday of the month, meaning that Sabrina was pulling up to Kevin’s apartment for the monthly hangout. She quirked a brow as she stepped out of her car, clicking it closed, overnight back thrown over her shoulder. To her left she saw Axel race by, running from his car to stoop down and lift Min onto his shoulders with a cheer, laughing when they gave a terrified shriek and clung to his hair. 

Sabrina chuckled and jogged lightly to her friend’s door, tuning out Min’s yelping and Axel’s laughter. She rapped on the wood, unsurprised to see it pulled open almost instantly by Nathan, who shot her a lazy grin. She gave him a solid fist bump and stepped inside, tossing her bag onto the couch. Kevin rounded the corner, eyes brightening when he saw her.

He stepped forward to ruffle her hair with a good natured, “Lemon!” Sabrina huffed and lightly punched his shoulder in retaliation, walking into the kitchen. Inside it Robbie was preparing nachos, gaze laser focused. 

She padded up behind him and looked over his shoulder as he cut thick slices of jalapeños. “Need any help?” She quipped. Robbie startled and turned to her, puffing his cheeks and scowling at her. 

“Don’t scare the man with a knife, Warhead,” he pointed a finger at her, before bringing her in for a half hug in greeting. Sabrina rolled her eyes but nodded assent, helping him finish the preparations. 

“What else ‘we eating this time?” She asked while cutting the tomatoes into tiny cubes. 

Robbie nodded to the stove, “Axel’s gonna make us some Mac with a new recipe or something, but other than that just popcorn and pizza, the usual,” he shrugged and moved onto cutting cilantro.

Sabrina gave an appreciative ‘ah’ before being tackled from behind with a crushing hug. She gave a half-shout and whirled around to see a beaming Jenna in her face, looking completely unapologetic. “What the hell!” She clutched her chest and heaved, flipping Jenna off when she laughed at her shock. 

“I came to drag you out of the kitchen,” she announced proudly.

“I was helping,” Sabrina countered, setting down her knife and passing what she had cut to Robbie, who took it with a grin. 

Jenna pointed with her thumb over her shoulder, to where most of her friends were huddled up in the living room. “It’s your turn for first movie pick,” 

At that Sabrina straightened up, power walking over to the living room. Axel spotted her and vaulted over the couch and gave her a high five as he jogged into the kitchen, presumably to make that macaroni Peach was talking about. She took his place on the couch, sandwiched between Ren and Nathan, the former giving her a bright smile and hug, the latter cuddling a giraffe plushie and sending her a nod. 

Kevin stood in front of the TV, remote in hand and face serious, albeit cracking at the edges. He looked directly at Sabrina and bowed, holding out the remote like a peace offering. “What shall we watch tonight madam?” He chuckled under his breath, eyes twinkling. 

Sabrina took the remote with a half bow, the joke not lost on her. “I choose,” she pretended to think very hard. “Parasite,” Min gave a cheer from their spot on an armchair, wrapped in blankets and pillows. Raven chose that moment to come back from the bathroom, noting everyone’s expressions, which ranged from interested to excited, and gave a questioning, ‘Did I hear someone say Parasite?’ 

Ren replied with a ‘Yup!’ And patted the couch next to her, which Raven gratefully accepted. As they booted up the movie and watched the open scenes, Axel and Peach returned with twin grins, holding bowls of Mac and cans of sodas respectively. Jenna gave a whoop at the sight and made grabby motions for a bowl, passing them around to those who wanted them. 

“Did we miss anything?” Axel asked over the rim of his Dr. Pepper, bowl in his hand, as he sat on the floor with his back pressed to the couch. Nathan shook his head and ruffled his hair from his place on the couch, sipping from his soda. 

“Not much, just the first few minutes,” Min added, tucking their Switch into their side as they leaned over their bowl, muttering sweet nothings to their macaroni while Kevin laughed and made gagging noises. 

Robbie came back with the massive plate of nachos, settling on the floor and placing the plate delicately on the ottoman, reaching over his shoulder to pat Nathan’s knee. Min looked at them and howled out ‘Get a room!’ before laughing when Nathan chucked his giraffe at them. 

Ren shushed them and unpaused the movie, thwacking Nathan on the shoulder and squinting threateningly at Min, who held their hands up in surrender. 

The ten of them watched the movie in anything but silence however, with Axel singing praises to the cinematography, Kevin watching with intrigue and loudly telling everyone to shut up, Min slapping the arm of their chair everytime something plot relevant happened, Jenna dramatically gasping at every moment and Ren haven fully given up attempting to corral everyone. Sabrina watched in rapt attention as the Kims continue to make their way into the Park’s family home, hands gripping at both Ren and Nathan as Gesun-se is revealed, ignoring the shocked noises from those who hadn’t seen the movie. 

After the film concluded the group was in various stages of disarray, Axel and Robbie talking with wide eyes and big hand motions, describing the acting and the ending, Min looking fully drained, somehow ending up beside Jenna on a different couch, Nathan half asleep next to Sabrina, who just grinned at the TV. 

Archana caught her eye and jerked her head to the kitchen, which Sabrina obliged. Together they grabbed a few of the empty bowls and toed their way into the kitchen unnoticed. There they washed the few dishes they had, conversation quiet but content. 

“Man, that movie always kills me,” Archana whispered, grinning at the TV, where the Main Menu was playing. 

Sabrina nodded agreement, “I hoped they wouldn’t mind the subtitles,” 

Archana snorted, “please, half of them watch anime, they’re used to reading subtitles,” Sabrina couldn’t help but agree, giving a huff of a laugh. 

She shot a look over her shoulder, at Kevin’s freezer. “‘Docha think Kev’s got any ice cream?” She inquired, drying her hands off. Archana frowned thoughtfully and shrugged, pulling it open. 

“Damn, it’s empty,” 

“Sucks, I was hoping for some.” Archana nodded her agreement, opening the refrigerator and giving an aborted whoop. “What?” Sabrina peered over her shoulder, eyes widening at the cake inside. 

They looked at each other and nodded, grins matching. Silently, they cut slices for themselves and perched on the kitchen counter, watching while the gang put on a Disney movie. Sabrina watched them laugh and joke with fond eyes, smiling down at them. 

Archana snorted, “careful, they might find out you’re a massive softie,” she teased, licking the frosting off her fork. Sabrina’s face instantly pulled into a scowl, ignoring the way her ears became warm. 

“Shuddup, I’m not,” although her voice wasn’t very convincing. 

Archana nodded solemnly, “sure sure,” she relented, eyes glimmering. 

Sabrina pointed her spoon at her, “I’m not.” Her friend merely smirked in response. 

After they had cleaned their plates of their stolen dessert they creeped back to the couches, curling in at the edges. Archana swiped one of Min’s blankets and plopped down next to Jenna, throwing the blanket around both of them. Sabrina slid in back to her spot between Ren and Nathan, deciding to watch her friends. 

Min was kneeling beside Kevin on the floor, both of them shouting good natured insults to the character on screen as it made a bad decision. Axel was draped over Raven and Ren’s legs, head on a pillow in Ren’s lap as she played with his hair. Robbie had climbed back onto the couch to lay against Nathan, who was only slightly more awake. Jenna and Archana were laughing around the blanket, half paying attention to the movie. 

The screen cast a blue hue onto everyone, the only light on being the hallway and kitchen light. Someone had drawn the curtains and brought more blankets, thrown around haphazardly. Empty and hopefully empty soda cans littered the floor and ottoman, more bowls of mac scattered around. Sabrina watched her friends, warmth and affection growing in her chest until she couldn’t help but smile. 

She bit her lip and fisted her sweatpants, hair falling in her face. “I love you guys,” she declared, feeling her cheeks light up like matches at her announcement. 

Axel ‘awwed’ and reached over to wrap his arms around her midsection, grinning up at her from his place on Ren’s lap. “Love you too Lemon-Lime,” he cooed.

Ren looked over at her and smiled gently, reaching over to plant a soft kiss to her hair. Nathan cracked an eye open and flipped her off, smirk pulling at his lips. Robbie laughed at his side and mouthed a ‘you too’.

Jenna looked over at her and practically wailed, throwing her arms open and calling out ‘I love you too Sabrina!!’ While Archana grinned wickedly and mouthed ‘softie’. 

Kevin looked over his shoulder and grinned at her, ears pink, while Min made gagging noises but looked incredibly fond. Raven reached over to pinch at Sabrina’s cheek and utterly beamed at her. 

They continued to watch movie after movie, eventually bringing popcorn and pizza into the mix, Axel and Peach teaming up to howl insults at the Hawaiian option. They ate popcorn until their stomach’s ached, Min bemoaning their existence and Jenna swearing up and down she would never touch another kernel. They played Uno and Cards Against Humanity, laughing growing ruckusly and grins pulling at all their faces. 

Sabrina had never been happier.


End file.
